Baayork Lee

Baayork Lee (born December 5, 1946) is an American actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, theatre director, and author.

Early life and career

Lee was born in New York City's Chinatown, to an Indian mother and Chinese father. She started dancing at an early age, and she made her Broadway debut at the age of five as Princess Ying Yawolak in the original production of The King and I in 1951. In a 2004 interview, she stated that Yul Brynner, the original king, was like a second father to her. After she outgrew her role in The King and I, she continued to study in ballet, modern, and afro-Cuban dance. She appeared in George Balanchine's original production of The Nutcracker, where she met ballerina Maria Tallchief, whom she idolized.

While attending the High School for Performing Arts, she met fellow student Michael Bennett. Around the same time, she appeared in Flower Drum Song. Although Lee aspired to become a professional ballerina, she was rejected from companies because of her height; she is tall.

She directed and choreographed South Pacific for City Springs Theatre Company in Sandy Springs, Georgia in 2019.

Stage

Awards and honors In 2017, Lee received the Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award, which honors members of the theater industry for their significant contributions to charitable causes. She was honored for her longstanding commitment to future generations of artists through her work with the National Asian Artists Project (NAAP) and theatre education programs around the world. Lee is a co-founder of NAAP, a non-profit that showcases the work of Asian-American theatre artists through performance, outreach, and educational programming. The Actors’ Equity Foundation gave Lee the Paul Robeson Citation Award in 2014.

Year Award / Honor Description Ref.1976Theatre World AwardA Chorus Line 2014 Paul Robeson Citation Award Actors’ Equity Foundation. 2017 Isabelle Stevenson Award For contributions to charitable causes through work with the National Asian Artists Project (NAAP) and theatre education programs worldwide.